Infant Supporting Pillow

ABSTRACT

An infant supporting pillow for situating an infant in a reclined and secured position for optimum colic-free feeding. The infant supporting pillow comprises of a wedge-shaped pillow portion and an U-shaped pillow portion. The wedge-shaped pillow portion is configured to have a top slanted surface, bottom flat surface, a back surface, two triangular-shaped sides, a thin edge where the top slated surface is closest to the bottom surface, and a thick edge where the top slanted surface is farthest from the bottom surface. The U-shaped pillow portion is configured to have a curved portion and two arm portions. The curved portion and the two arm portions of the U-shaped pillow portion are abutted to the thin edge and the two triangular-shaped sides of the wedge-shaped pillow portion respectively. Each arm portions of the U-shaped pillow portion having an inner sidewall and an outer sidewall, wherein at least part of the inner sidewall of each arm is adjoined to one of the triangular-shaped sides of the wedge-shaped pillow portion.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

The present invention relates to a infant supporting apparatus and moreparticularly pertains to an infant supporting pillow for receiving andsecuring an infant in an inclined position during and after bottlefeeding.

Baby colic, also known as infantile colic, is defined as episodes ofcrying for more than three hours a day, for more than three days a week,for three weeks in an otherwise healthy child. While the causes of babycolic could be many, two of the most common causes are infant gasbuildup and acid reflux, which are painful experiences that causes ababy to become fussy and irritable.

One of the best ways to reduce both gas buildup and acid reflux is toposition the infant at an inclined position during and after feeding.While there are supporting devices that put an infant in an inclinedposition, current offerings are dissatisfactory for a variety ofreasons. For example, U.S. Pat. No. 5,172,955 to Freese et al., teachesa bouncy seat that comprises a wire frame which is bent to form asupport base and angles upwardly from the base to form a loop thatsupports a fabric seating surface. Another example, U.S. Pat. No.5,439,008 to Bowman, teaches a wedge-shaped support member forpositioning an infant in a reclined position. Yet another example, U.S.Pat. No. 7,234,181 to Griggs, teaches an incline sleeper for an infantthat has a resilient insert with an infant-receiving depression that isadapted to receive and support an infant in a supine and angledposition. While these prior art devices fulfill their respective,particular objective and requirements, these aforementioned patents donot teach a supporting device that is freestanding, stable, compact,comfortable, simple to manufacture, and conducive to colic-free feeding.Therefore, it can be appreciated that there exists a need for a new andimproved support device for feeding infants that can substantiallyreduce colic inducing gas buildup and acid reflux in a supportive,secured, and comfortable manner.

BRIEF SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The present invention provides an improved infant supporting pillow thatis freestanding, stable, compact, comfortable, simple to manufacture,and conducive to colic-free feeding. The infant supporting pillow ismade by combining a wedge-shaped pillow portion with a U-shaped pillowportion to form an integrated pillow. The integrated pillow provides acradle that partially envelops a sitting infant. The top surface of thewedge-shaped pillow portion provides an incline plane on which a sittinginfant may recline. The U-shaped pillow portion secures the sittinginfant in a comfortable and secured sitting position by providing araised wall on both sides of the infant supporting pillow as well as aleg rest. The U-shaped pillow portion also provides a stable footing.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS

The accompanying drawings, which are incorporated in and constitute apart of this application, illustrate several aspects of the presentdisclosure and together with the description, serve to explain theprinciples of the present disclosure. Like numbers represent the sameelements throughout the figures.

FIG. 1 illustrates a perspective view of an exemplary infant supportingpillow in accordance with the present invention.

FIG. 2 illustrates a front view of the supporting pillow of FIG. 1.

FIG. 3 illustrates a cross-sectional view of the supporting pillow ofFIG. 2.

FIG. 4 is a 3D model of the supporting pillow of FIG. 1.

FIG. 5 illustrates the operation of the supporting pillow of FIG. 1 byshowing an infant sitting on the device.

FIG. 6 illustrates a cross-sectional view of the supporting pillow ofFIG. 5.

FIG. 7 illustrates the supporting pillow of FIG. 1 with an optionalfitted cover.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

The present invention can be understood more readily by reference to thefollowing detailed description, examples, drawings, and photographs.However, it is to be understood that this invention is not limited tothe specific devices, systems, and/or methods disclosed unless otherwisespecified. It is also to be understood that the terminology used hereinis for the purpose of describing particular aspects only and is notintended to be limiting.

The following description of the invention is provided as an enablingteaching of the invention in its best, currently know embodiment. Tothis end, those skilled in the relevant art will recognized andappreciate that many changes can be made to the various aspects of theinvention described herein, while still obtaining the beneficial resultsof the present invention. It will also be apparent that some of thedesired benefits of the present invention can be obtained by selectingsome of the features of the present invention without utilizing otherfeatures. Accordingly, those skilled in the art will recognize that manymodifications and adaptations to the present invention are possible andcan even be desirable in certain circumstances and are a part of theinvention. Thus, the following description is provided as illustrativeof the principles of the present invention and not in limitationthereof.

As used throughout, the singular forms “a,” “an,” and “the” includeplural referents unless the context clearly dictates otherwise. Rangescan be expressed herein as from “about” one particular value, and/or to“about” another particular value. When such range is expressed, anotheraspect includes from the one particular value and/or to the otherparticular value. Similarly, when values are expressed asapproximations, by use of the antecedent “about,” it will be understoodthat the particular value forms another aspect. It will be furtherunderstood that the endpoints of each of the ranges are significant bothin relation to the other endpoint, and independently of the otherendpoint.

As used herein, the terms “optional” and “optionally” mean that thesubsequently described event or circumstance can or cannot occur, andthat the description includes instances where the event or circumstanceoccurs and instances where it does not.

In one broad aspect, the present disclosure comprises a freestandinginfant supporting pillow that situates the infant at an inclinedposition for an optimal feeding posture that minimizes colic inducingconditions such as infant gas buildup and acid reflux. Moreparticularly, one aspect the present disclosure comprises an infantsupporting pillow having a body comprising a wedge-shaped pillow portionthat is at least partially enveloped by an U-shaped pillow portion. In afurther aspect, the wedge-shaped pillow portion is configured to supportthe head of an infant, who is reclined on the top, inclined surface ofwedge-shaped pillow while being further supported and secured in placeby the U-shaped pillow portion. In another further aspect, thewedge-shaped pillow portion is configured to support at least a portionof the infant's body. In light of the present disclosure, one skilled inthe art will appreciate the infant supporting pillow described hereinwill situate the infant in a comfortable inclined position that isconducive to colic-free feeding.

Referring to FIGS. 1-7, in which like numerals indicate like parts, thepreferred embodiments of the new and improved supporting pillow forfeeding infants are disclosed as follows.

In one aspect and referring to FIGS. 1-4, an infant supporting pillow100 comprises a structured pillow shell filled with resilient fillmaterial. In one aspect, the structured pillow shell comprises awedge-shaped pillow portion 106 (as indicated by vertices a, b, c, d, e,and f in FIGS. 1 and 4) that is configured to support at least a portionof an infant's body and an U-shaped pillow portion 102 that partiallyencircles the wedge-shaped portion 106. The U-shaped-pillow portion 102comprises of an outer sidewall 103, an inner sidewall 104, and a legrest 108 that are configured to partially encircle the wedge-shapedportion 106 so as to form a retaining and supportive structure thatkeeps the infant stably situated within in the pillow. The innersidewalls 104 of the U-shaped pillow portion 102 are joined to the twotriangular-shaped sidewalls (as defined by vertices a, b, and f on oneside and d, c, and e on the other) of the wedge-shaped pillow portion106. The outer sidewall 103 and the inner sidewall 104 may be made ofone continuous fabric or they may be made of two separate pieces offabric that are sewed together to form a seam 105. In one aspect, theouter sidewall 103 is slanted outwardly from top to bottom so as toprovide additional stability for the supporting pillow 100. In anotheraspect, a three-point seatbelt 110 is provided to securely hold theinfant in place during and after feeding. In one aspect, thewedge-shaped portion 106 and the U-shaped portion 102 are joined to forman integral piece in which there is only one chamber inside for pillowfill material. In another aspect, the wedge-shaped portion 106 is aseparate pillow that is functionally attached to the U-shaped portion102 to form the supporting pillow 100.

In one aspect as illustrated in FIG. 3, which shows a cross-section ofthe supporting pillow 100, the wedge-shaped pillow portion 106 comprisesa top surface 116, a bottom surface 114, and a back surface 112. Inaspects, the top surface 116 forms an inclined plane on which the infantrests. In some aspects, the top surface 116 comprises a substantiallyflat surface as shown in FIG. 3. In another aspect, the top surface 116comprises a convex surface. In yet another aspect, the top surface 116comprises a concave surface. In one aspect, the top surface 116 isrectangular in shape. In another aspect, the top surface 116 is in a Vshape, with the upper area of the top surface 116 being wider than thelower area of the top surface 116.

In one aspect, the resilient fill material may comprise at least one ofcotton, polyester fiber, feathers, foam, wool, viscoelastic material,beads, and beans. In further aspects, the foam can comprise, for exampleand without limitation, at least one of an open cell foam, a closed cellfoam, a memory foam, a natural latex rubber foam, viscoelastic foam andthe like. In further aspects, beads can comprise, for example andwithout limitation, polystyrene beads and the like.

It is contemplated that in one aspect, the front to back length of thesupport pillow is about 16 inches to about 22 inches, and, morepreferably, about 20 inches. In another aspect, the width of the supportpillow at the widest section, from one outer sidewall 103 to theopposite outer sidewall 103 in the back of the supporting pillow, isabout 12 inches to 18 inches, and, more preferably, about 14 inches. Inyet another aspect, the width of the support pillow 100 tapers down fromthe widest section in the back to a narrower section in the front, nearthe leg rest 108. In one aspect, the width of leg rest 108 between thetwo inner sidewalls 104 is about 3 inches to about 7 inches, and, morepreferably, about 4 inches.

FIG. 5 illustrates the positioning of an infant in one aspect of thesupporting pillow 100. As shown in the figures, in one aspect, the headof the infant is rested on the top portion of the wedge-shaped portion106. In one aspect, the infant's leg is supported by the leg rest 108.In another aspect, the infant is kept from rolling over the supportpillow 100 by the two inner sidewalls 104 and the three-point seatbelt110. FIG. 6 provides a cross-sectional view of the infant supportingpillow and the sitting infant as shown in FIG. 5. In one aspect, afitted cover 118 wraps around the supporting pillow 100. The fittedcover 118 is substantially sized and shaped to conform to the supportingpillow 100. In further aspects, the fitted cover 118 can be waterresistant, waterproof, stain resistant and the like. FIG. 7 shows thefitted cover 118 movable outfitted onto one aspect of the supportingpillow 100. Through holes 120 are provided for allowing the three-pointseatbelt 110 to pass through.

It will be apparent to those skilled in the art that variousmodifications and variations can be made in the present inventionwithout departing from the scope or spirit of the invention. Otheraspects of the invention will be apparent to those skilled in the artfrom consideration of the specification and practice of the inventiondisclosed herein.

What is claimed:
 1. An infant supporting pillow, comprising: awedge-shaped pillow portion having a top slanted surface, a bottom flatsurface, a back surface, two triangular-shaped sides, a thin edge wherethe top slated surface is closest to the bottom surface, and a thickedge where the top slanted surface is farthest from the bottom surface;and an U-shaped pillow portion having a curved portion and two armportions that are abutted to the thin edge and the two triangular-shapedsides of the wedge-shaped pillow portion respectively, each arm portionsof the U-shaped pillow portion having an inner sidewall and an outersidewall, wherein at least part of the inner sidewall of each arm isadjoined to one of the triangular-shaped sides of the wedge-shapedpillow portion.
 2. The infant supporting pillow of claim 1, wherein theat least part of the inner sidewall of each arm the U-shaped pillowportion is adjoined to one of the triangular-shaped sides of thewedge-shaped pillow portion by sewing.
 3. The infant supporting pillowof claim 2, wherein the adjoined U-shaped pillow portion and thewedge-shaped pillow portion forms a single chamber for pillow fillingmaterial.
 4. The infant supporting pillow of claim 1, wherein at leastpart of the inner sidewall of each arm portion forming a slantedsupportive surface for a sitting infant.
 5. The infant supporting pillowof claim 1, wherein the curved portion of the U-shaped pillow portion isconfigured to be lower than the two arm portions, whereby a leg-restingplatform is provided by the curved portion of the U-shaped pillowportion for a sitting infant.
 6. The infant supporting pillow of claim5, wherein the top surface of the curved portion of the U-shaped pillowis rounded to provide an ergonomic leg-resting platform for a sittinginfant.
 7. The infant supporting pillow of claim 5, wherein theleg-resting platform is between 3 inches and 7 inches in width fromside-to-side.
 8. The infant supporting pillow of claim 1, wherein aseatbelt is provided to secure a sitting infant to the infant supportingpillow.
 9. The infant supporting pillow of claim 1, wherein the outersidewall of each arm is slanted outwardly from top to bottom, therebyproviding additional stability for the infant supporting pillow.
 10. Theinfant supporting pillow of claim 1, wherein the front to back length ofthe infant supporting pillow is between 16 inches to about 22 inches.11. The infant supporting pillow of claim 10, wherein the front to backlength of the infant supporting pillow is about 20 inches.
 12. Theinfant supporting pillow of claim 1, wherein the width of the infantsupporting pillow from side to side is tapered from back to frontwhereby the widest section is in the back.
 13. The infant supportingpillow of claim 1, wherein the width of the infant supporting pillowfrom side to side is between 12 inches and 18 inches.